Check here for current events.

3/6/10 - Things have been crazy. I had to make a separate page with all of the info. Click here to read about the Can-Am and other things.

2/25/10 - Stratford has been canceled. There is a sprint race this weekend, but our dogs have been doing runs of 18+ miles each time they go out, it does not make sense to do a sprint race at this point. I also found out that the Bear Notch race is not going to happen. At this point we only have the Can-Am on our schedule, but we are hoping another race might pop up.

1/17/10 - Sandwich has been canceled :-( We were thinking of heading to New York to do the Mannsville Quest, but only 2 other teams were entered. Scott's brother was visiting from North Carolina, so we decided to visit with him instead.

2/5/10 - We went to Greenville Maine to run another 30 mile race. The community worked hard to put on this race after most of the trails were destroyed by rain. I was very pleased with how nice the trail was! We left Jadis home and we had decent runs, they were not super fast, but they were much better than the weekend before. Scott ran: Circe, Lance, Bobbi, Mannie, Mark, Viktor, Homer & Beaver. I ran: Valeska, Vale, Solo, Eve, Lucas, Vince, Virgil, & Kermit. We finished SD titles on Lance, Vale, Solo, Vince & Virgil, and Viktor finished his SDO title. We are tired from racing 5 weekends in a row. Scott's Valentines Day gift is that we are not racing next weekend.

1/30/10 - We went to Brownville Maine to run a 30 mile race.  Friday night we drove up and stayed with Gary & Joan Chapman at Critterwoods. Joan made a wonderful dinner and we stayed up too late talking. Saturday AM we drove over to the race. We were not happy to see how hard the trail was, but the trails are all in bad shape after getting a rain storm Monday. The race was well run, and they had a winter carnival going on at the same time.  Our dogs had not been on the trail in a week because I could not find a safe trail in time to train before the race. We did not expect to have an awesome run because they had not been out in a week. What we did not expect was for Lance to breed Jadis (we did not know she was in season, she was not due until March), and then all of the boys going crazy. Scott's team shut down because of it. He made at least 12 leader combo changes. Nothing worked. He ended up with Jadis & Circe in lead and he followed me to the finish line. Scott ran: Circe, Lance, Jadis, Bobbi, Mannie, Mark, Viktor, Homer & Beaver. I ran: Valeska, Vale, Solo, Eve, Lucas, Vince, Virgil, & Kermit. We ran in the open class against 10 &12 dog teams. Kermit finished his SDX title. Next week will be better! Jadis will be staying home!

1/23/10 - We went to the Wonalancet Fun Run here in NH. It was so nice to be able to race locally! Marsha, as usual, did a wonderful job putting on the race. The trail was well marked, and she had tons of help out there. Scott and I went into this race with the mind set that we were not going to race, we were using it as a training run. Scott knew that he would have second place even if he did not try, and I did not really mind where I placed. Last weekend was a difficult trail, and we have more 30 mile races coming up, it was important that the young dogs have fun. Scott ran: Circe, Lance, Jadis, Mannie, Mark, Lucas, Homer & Beaver in the 8 dog class. He was trying to let Lance finish the race in lead, but eventually put Jadis up there with Circe. It was the first race where Circe took each and every command with confidence, which makes us very happy. I'm not sure if Lance was being sensitive because Circe is in standing season, or if he was stressed from last weekend, but Jadis got the job done. I ran:  Valeska, Vale, Solo, Vince, Virgil, & Kermit in the 6 dog class. They took off very fast and I flipped my sled right out of the start, I'm a bit bummed because I had made it pretty far into the season without falling off my runners (don't forget I train both teams alone). We then headed into the woods and found out that the trail was extremely fast. Valeska gees over so much that I was fighting to keep the sled from hitting trees for miles. I did end up hitting a tree with my right shoulder though, Ouch. after hitting my shoulder my guys chased Kim Berg's team, and I ended up taking a right turn too tight which made me hit a stop sign and go over a snow bank. Shortly after that I decided I had enough, I stopped the team and let Kim go ahead, then I ran the trail at a slower pace. I caught up with Lidia at 10 miles and we had a nice run together right into the finish. My team finished in 5th place (out of 12 teams), not bad for not trying, I never even ran up a single hill. Vale did seem a bit down, and I'm not sure if she was worried it would be like last weekend, or if it was because she is in standing season. I did not take her out of lead, and she made it to the finish line where she perked up. Scott & I both agreed that the trail did not seem as hilly as it has in the past. I don't think any trail, we have raced in the past, will feel hilly after running the Eagle Lake 30.

1/16/10 - We went to Eagle Lake Maine to run a 30 mile race. That area always has the best Hound/Alaskan teams in New England. We went to the race knowing that the competition would be tough. I told Scott our goal was to be in the top ten. We had spent days trying to decide who to drop off the teams to bring it down to 6 dog teams. In the past it has always been easy to leave home a lesser dog. This year we have two near perfect 8 dog teams, so it is really really hard to leave dogs home. For Scott's team we decided to leave Viktor off the team. His muscle was bothering him during training on Wednesday, so I figured a day off would be good for him. Mind you it is really really hard for us to leave him home, we just want him to be back to normal again. After much discussion we decided to leave Mark home and let Homer race. Mark is the type of dog who can miss 30 miles and be fine, Homer needs each and every run. For my team I decided that I wanted to give all of the Valeska pups & Solo a chance at a 30, I also needed Lucas for a backup leader. I decided to leave Eve & Kermit home. I cannot even begin to tell you how hard it was to leave without Mark & Kermit. Scott's final team was: Circe, Lance, Jadis, Mannie, Homer & Beaver. My team was: Valeska, Vale, Solo, Lucas, Vince & Virgil.  Our friend Jaye's truck broke down a couple of days before the race. Jaye was entered in the 100 mile race, and I could not let her stay home. Friday am we stuffed 21 dogs, a ton of gear/supplies, and the three of us, into my truck for the very long drive to Eagle Lake. Saturday am my team took off 2 minutes before Scott's team. The first part of the trail was 1.5 miles of plowed, sanded road...so much for my new runners. Scott tried to spare his new plastic and ran for half of the start. He caught me as we turned into the woods. We ran together, and with other teams, for 20 miles. Then my pups started to tire and Scott lost us. The trail had the biggest hills I have ever run on with a 6 dog team! The puppies really slowed for the last 5 miles. I thought about putting Lucas in lead to pick up the pace, but decided I was going to let Vale finish the race in lead, even if it meant loosing a placement or two. Scott finished a little over 11 minutes ahead of me. Scott was 7th place (and the fastest purebred team) and I was in 10th place (second fastest purebred team). It was  wonderful that we both finished in the money, and we got our entry fees back. Scott missed SDX time by 30 seconds! In the long run he was really bummed about leaving Mark home, so we will not do that again. There was many times I wished I had Kermit on those never ending hills, but I was really proud of my pups. It was not until I was on the trail that I realized my whole team is obedience titled. Scott was so proud of Circe and Lance running lead, especially since Circe is in season. I should also mention that Vale is also in season! Vale is JUST like Valeska and will be a huge asset to our teams for years to come. I told them I would not come back for that race unless they made it an 8 dog. I think many people felt the same way. It was the type of trail that could bring grown men to tears.

1/9/10 & 1/10/10 - We had our first race of the season. Two days before the race I had to make a change to the teams. I put Lucas on Scott's team, and moved Viktor to my team, because Viktor's thigh muscle was bothering him again. Scott's team was: Circe, Lance, Jadis, Mannie, Mark, Lucas, Homer & Beaver. My team was: Valeska, Vale, Solo, Eve, Vince, Virgil, Viktor & Kermit. Day 1 Scott's team did well, but 2 different teams were running down the wrong side of the trail, and they ran into Scott's team. In the past, with his team, Valeska would have been able to prevent that problem, but Circe & Lance are learning confidence in lead, after all Lance is only a yearling. After that Scott could not get his team to gee over (run down the right side of the trail) because in their minds that meant other teams would run into them. They also lost their speed because of the confidence problem. I had a wonderful run, the yearlings were super, Vale did awesome in lead. The dogs finished the trail in a time that pleased me. I actually beat Scott by a few seconds. Usually Scott's team is 10 minutes faster than my team. Does not matter if we do 12 miles or 25 miles it is a set 10 minutes each run. So that really shows how slow Scott's team was. Scott's father ran Ember & Kyia in the skijor class and they took 1st. I ran 3 dogs in the old dog class the team was: Kyia, Valeska & Orion. They did great, it was awesome to see Kyia & Valeska work their commands together, we took 1st place. Day 2 Scott had another bad run. Lance would not run lead and Scott had to put Jadis in lead. Jadis and Circe both have speed, but not when they run together. Scott's time was slightly faster. My run was decent, but I could tell Valeska did not have as good of a time. I pretty much had the same time as Saturday. Overall Scott took 4th & I took 5th place in the 8 dog class (8 teams were entered in that class). So nothing to brag about. I'm going to run Lance with Valeska this week to get his confidence back. I was supposed to run in the puppy class, but Dug twisted his shoulder coming out of the kennel, so I did not bring them. I have run them though, and they are fun, Varitek is a natural. Mark finished his Sled Dog Outstanding title.

12/9/09 - People have been bugging me for new stories. I almost killed myself today, and I wrote about it. Click here to read the newest story. Enjoy!

12/4/09 - Deb & I decided to go to a show in Providence, RI. Deb showed Josh (Ben's son) in Bred By, I showed Valeska in Bred By. We both got second place. We had a nice lunch with Trish, shopped & drove home. We had a fun day together.

11/21/09 & 11/22/09 - Scott & I went to the shows in West Springfield, MA. On Saturday I showed Valeska in Novice B, she was doing well, but then for some reason she came before she was called on the recall so we did not qualify. Scott took Circe in Rally Advanced, I thought they did pretty good, but the judge did not qualify them because Circe jumped on Scott. We have always thought that the rules read that if the dog touches you the judge will take off points, if you touch your dog you do not qualify. Apparently that judge reads the rules differently than us. I took Valeska into a good sized Bred By class and did not even place. We told Solo that she had to save the day. I know that is a lot to ask of a little girl, but she knew what had to be done. Solo did great, the best she has ever done, and she finished her Rally Novice title. On Sunday I started with Valeska  in Novice B again. She did the same thing as the day before. Back to the drawing board, coming before she is called is not something she has ever done. If I was willing to admit that she is getting old I would say it was the acoustics in that building and she was afraid she might not hear me and came early. Since she is still young like a pup, and has another good 10 years left of life, we will not say that was the problem. Next Scott went in Rally Advanced with Circe. I thought they did about the same as the day before, Scott thought she felt better, either way she did not jump on him so she qualified for her second RA leg (same judge as Saturday). We had to wait a while for breed, so we enjoyed watching the agility. Eventually I was able to show Valeska in Bred By and we won our class. I was really really hoping for a major, but she did not even take Reserve.

11/6/09 - Deb & I decided to go to a show in Fitchburg, MA. I brought Valeska, and she brought Josh (Ben's son). Valeska won her class, but did not take Winners Bitch, so no points for us. Josh did not go Best of Winners, so no points for him. Josh did beat Valeska for Best Bred By, he went into the Bred By Working Group and took a group 2nd! While at the show Valeska did a photo shoot for PetEdge. Watch for Valeska in your upcoming catalogs, she posed on a brown dog bed.

11/1/09 - I finally caught up with some much needed updates!! I also added a fun page of the dogs working in harness this season. Training 2009.

10/9/09 & 10/10/09 - Friday night we took Valeska, Hailee & Solo to a night trial in Amherst, NH. Scott showed Valeska in the Rally Advanced class. They finished her RA title and took second place with a score of 94. Scott showed Solo in the Rally Novice class. It was her first show, and the first time she has ever been in a building. She did well with a score of 91, and they got her first leg. I showed Hailee also in the Rally Novice class, and got her second leg. Saturday morning we went back with Hailee & Solo. Scott took Solo in and got her second leg. She did not do as well, apparently 2 days in a row was too much for her. I took Hailee in and finished her Rally Novice title with a score of 90.

In a little over a  month we have finished 7 titles! 1 Championship, 1 Companion Dog, 4 Rally Novice & 1 Rally Advanced.

9/24/09 - 10/4/09 - Scott and I went to the Siberian Husky Club Of America's National Specialty Show in Chattanooga, TN. We had a wonderful time! We took Valeska, Vince, Virgil & Ben. We left on Thursday so that we could spend a few days in North Carolina with Scott's brother, Jay. We arrived in Chattanooga on Sunday. We started with a cancer seminar on Monday.
Tuesday I showed Valeska in veteran sweeps. Of course she had nice coat all summer long, and blew her coat once I mailed the entry. I did not expect her to do much in the breed ring. We did make the cut, and the judge kept us in 5th place. Scott then took Valeska in for Rally Advanced. They took 2nd place, getting her second leg, with a score of 96 (out of 100). Then I took Virgil in the Rally Novice ring and finished his title with a score of 94. Scott then took Vince in the Rally Novice ring and finished his title with a score of 95. We finished off the day with 2 seminars.
Wednesday was another busy day. Scott took Vince and I took Virgil in the 12-18 class. We did not have any plans of placing, what I did not expect was for Virgil to be nervous. Virgil has always been an outgoing & bold guy, so it must be a stage. He was fine on Tuesday when we did Rally Obedience. I took Valeska in Novice B and she earned her first CD leg with a score of 186.5 (out of 200) and 4th place (I lost 3rd place in a run off). I also took Ben in Novice B and finished his CD title! Scott took Vince in Pre-Novice and took 4th place, he would have had 1st place had he not gotten up on the recall. I took Virgil in Pre-Novice, but he was so upset I asked to be excused. Then Scott took Ben in the Sled Dog class and they took 2nd place.
Thursday was a day of rest!
Friday we helped Jenny show Liv & Zina in the Am-bred class. I made the cut with Zina which was good. Zina earned her Canine Good Citizen title the day before. It was nice to see the girls. Then I showed Valeska in the Sled Dog Outstanding class, she took first since she was the only one.
Saturday Valeska went in for Best Of Breed and did not do anything, no surprise since she looks dumb without hair.
Sunday AM we drove straight home in 20 hours! We only stopped to pee & get gas.

See Valeska on Animal Planets Dogs 101, aired 10/3/09 . She is the "digging" dog. He needed a dog that would dig on command and then lay in a hole. Well, she is Valeska, and does whatever we ask, so she dug a hole & laid in a hole.

9/5/09 & 9/6/09 - We took Ember, Vale, Vince & Virgil to the North Conway, NH show. I found out that Ember needed 1 single point to finish his American Championship, so I entered him at the last minute. On Saturday I showed Ember and he took Reserve to Ben's son Josh (Deb's dog who took Winners Dog at Yankee this year). Then we took the V's in Rally Novice B, Scott works/shows Vince & Vale, I work Virgil. They all did well, but Virgil was the star of the day with a score of 97 (5th place....of course). Sunday I showed Ember and we took Winners Dog, and then Best of Breed to really finish his American Championship. Then we showed the V's again. Sunday's judge was much harder. Vale was the super star of the day with a score of 95 (5th place....of course)! Vale wanted to finish her Rally Novice title in a big way. We had a good time. Next show will be the National!
Came home on Sunday and ran the dogs. Wow do we have some good teams! So proud of them!

8/30/09 - We had our first run this AM.  I never run dogs before September 1st, but it is nice to have Scott help me with the first hookup. Boy do I have my work cut out for me with all these young dogs! I'm tired just thinking about it. I always say who my super star yearling is. This season it is Vince.

8/19/09 - I finally decided on my National entry! I knew that we would bring Valeska, Ben & Vince. I kept going back and forth about who the 4th dog should be. We are only allowed 4 dogs in the room, and it is pretty easy to only take care of 4 dogs. I could not decide if it should be Virgil or Circe. Both could be entered in several classes, and both are fun dogs to travel with. Circe can be a picky eater on the road and would be coming off puppies. So, I decided to go with Virgil as the 4th dog.

8/7/09 & 8/8/09 - I took Valeska & Ember to Ballston Spa, NY. On Friday Ember won the Bred-By class, but did not do anything else. Valeska took 4th in Bred-By. Saturday was our day. I told myself that I was going to dedicate the day to Pando, since we lost her on Monday. Ember won his Bred-By class, then took Winners Dog. Valeska won her Bred-By class, and took Reserve Winners Bitch. Ember went back in for the breed and by some grace of god he took Best Of Winners and finished his American championship with a 4 point major. Pando was really looking out for us! Thank you Pando!

8/2/09 - We went to a dog show in Keene, NH with Vale & Valeska. We took Pando with us since she is so sick and we cannot leave her alone. We told the girls to make Pando proud and they did. Scott showed Vale in Rally Novice, they did well and earned the first leg of her title with a score of 94. I showed Valeska in Bred By, she took Winners Bitch and earned another point.

7/15/09 - Vince & Vale graduated their obedience classes and both got their Canine Good Citizen titles. Vale was really good tonight! She went on a long hike up Mt. Major with her buddy Rondo today. Vince is always perfect, so no surprise there.

7/2/09 - Virgil graduated classes and got his Canine Good Citizen title. I LOVE working with him! He is a good obedience dog.

7/1/09 - I took Ember to a Ralph Lauren photo shoot in NY.

6/20/09 & 6/21/09 - I took Ember & Valeska to some shows in Maine. I was thinking it was outdoors, but it was tiny rings indoors, which meant neither dog ever got a chance to move out. I never got over 2nd place with either of them.

5/2/09 - I have been working Hailee for the last month to get her ready for Rally Novice. I had her entered in the Acton, ME show this weekend, but of course she had to come into season which makes her not eligible to compete in obedience. We also had Vince entered in the 9-12 month class. It is a small show and I was hoping he could at least take Best Of Bred puppy. He was the only dog in his class, so he easily took first place ;-) a very cute female puppy got Best Puppy. Scott is still working with Vince to get him to be a bit more confident so that he looks nicer. Vince is one of the dogs Scott will be working in obedience this spring/summer, and I think that will make him shine a bit more. He is such a sweet little guy. We enjoyed the rest of the day by shopping in Maine. I found a Trans Alaskan Anorak, normally priced at $200.00, for $60.00 at Cabelas! It has a small tear in it, and I will just put a patch over it. Unfortunately it is the same color as Scott's Anorak, I guess we will match at all of the races. We were supposed to return Sunday AM to show Vince again, but my stomach was a mess. I saw a commercial for a pasta bread bowl at Dominoes Pizza, I thought it looked really good. Scott took me there for dinner and it did not sit well with me at all.

4/18/09 & 4/19/09 - Scott and I went to the Ohio Specialty. What a drive! We left on Friday and drove all day. Saturday started off with me showing Ben in obedience, the Novice B class. He did wonderful in the regular exercises, I thought for sure he would finish his CD title. We went back in for the long sit & down and he did a perfect recall during the sit. I'm starting to think we will never finish his title. Scott took Vince in the 9-12 month sweeps class, and they took 2nd. The judge was a fellow musher. Scott took Vince back in for the regular 9-12 month class and they took 4th. I took Ember in Bred By and we did not place, I was embarrassed because he showed like a butt head. After lunch I took Valeska in Bred By and she took 4th. Sunday I started with Ben, he did not do as well in the regular classes but qualified. When we went back in for the sits & downs he did the same thing as Saturday. Scott took Vince in the 9-12 class and took 4th again, he did not show well, and really wanted to go home. I showed Ember and he took 3rd in Bred By. Then I showed Valeska and she took 2nd in Bred By. Scott showed Zina and she did not place. The judge was Vince Buoniello he judges dogs against the standard. The highest score a dog can receive is an A ++. Valeska got an A++ (and he told me he really liked her), Zina got an A + with a small +, Ember got and A + & Vince got an A. There was some really nice dogs entered at the show!  It took all day Monday to drive back home. On the way home we stopped  to pickup Bobbi in CT. Our friend Kathy brought her back from Al & Ann Stead's home in MN.

3/18/09 - I figured I should write something now that the race season is over. I had a miscarriage the week before the Sandwich Notch race. Scott feels that I do too much; taking care of 30 + dogs, running 3 teams, taking care of 6 cats, 6 parrots, working full time, trying to take care of the house and, because it is me, trying to overachieve at everything I do. Scott has always thought I set my goals too high. With that in mind I have decided to make my life a little easier.
You will notice that over the next few weeks some of the dogs on the site will be leaving. We are going to get down to 25 Siberians (from 34) this spring. I have homes lined up for several great dogs. Dahlia & Weather have already left. Soon to follow will be: Kasper, Belle, Liv, Kit & Butters. I have had Zina here for the season because Deb could no longer keep her, and I found her a great home. Also, we were going to keep a Ben X Liv puppy, but we have decided to also place him (see the available page for more info). We will miss all of them, and it is hard to see them go.
We are buying a dog named Bobbi from Al & Ann Stead. Bobbi is currently in Alaska getting ready to run the ONAC. Bobbi is a leader and with the problems we had with Viktor being lame, and nobody else being able to keep up with Valeska in lead, made me feel that we needed another dog from them. This dog is costing us more than any other dog we have ever bought!
The spring & summer will be dedicated to training & showing dogs. Vince is super handsome and I would like to get him in the breed ring. He is currently learning to be a show dog, and he thinks it is fun. We also want to get Ember & Valeska into the breed ring as much as possible. Ember needs 1 major to finish his US championship, and Valeska needs both majors. We also, of course, have obedience plans for the year.
Every mushers finishes off the race season thinking about the following season. I'm already looking forward to fall training. I had wanted to start the season with 16 dogs, but I cannot seem to get down to that number, so I will be starting the season off with 17 dogs. Our plan is to have 2 great 8 dog teams once we get on snow.  Since we will be training a bunch of yearlings, starting with 17 is probably going to help in the long run. If one of the babies needs time to stay home and mature we will have our 16.
I want to give a big THANKS to our 08/09 sponsors. They made our race season possible.

3/14/09 - We decided to run the Bear Notch race even though we had not run the dogs since the Can-Am, and some of the dogs on my team had not been out in a month. In order to do well at a race you should keep training the dogs so they are in shape. Just 5 days off and they are snails, 2 weeks is a lot of rest. So we went to this race for fun and did not expect much, it is a nice season ender.  Scott ran:  Valeska, Viktor, Jadis, Circe, Mark, Beaver, Homer & Mannie. Viktor was able to complete the race in lead, but his gait was off. We are hoping that he comes back 100% in the fall. Figuring they had not been out in 2 weeks his team did well! They placed 6th, and the 1st place team is an Alaskan team Scott usually beats. So if I had gotten off my lazy butt and trained them they might have won the race. I ran: Lucas, Belle, Kit, Kyia, Kermit, Hailee,  Ember & Tannis. I felt like we were snailing. My team did not do as well with 2 weeks (and some of them 4 weeks) off, but we had a good time. Bobby Bain ran Kasper & Zina on his team. When I passed Bobby's team Kasper was working his butt off going up the hill while his other leader necklined along. You have to love Kasper, no matter what he gives it his all. That's all folks!

2/28/09 - We ran the Can- Am race, both of us were entered in the 30 mile class. We both love this race. The whole community gets involved and the race comes off feeling magical. When we are up there we cannot help but want to live there. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Mark, Circe, Beaver, & Mannie. They did well, once again Viktor could not run lead so Scott put Circe in lead. I ran: Jadis, Lucas, Belle, Hailee, Kermit & Homer. Jadis is my leader who sets the pace, she was just finishing up with her season and did not want to run lead. I put Homer up in lead who is a bit slower in lead. Over all I was happy with their performance. I had stopped for 10 minutes to help a musher in need. I flagged down some people on snow machines and asked them to go get this girl some help. Teams passed us while we tried to get her situated. I was afraid my hook would not hold my team anymore with teams passing, so I told her to be strong, and that I would go to up to the turn off and tell the trail crew she needed help. As I left another guy was stopping to help her some more. I did go up to the guy at the turn off and had him call on his cell phone to get her help. I was depressed for this girl for a while, and I think the team sensed it. I had to shake it off and get my team perked back up. The man who stopped to help her as I was leaving passed me, so I knew he had not stopped to help her for more than 5 minutes. The trail was very fast and I think I did most of it standing on the drag slowing them down. When the race was over I felt bad for the team because if they had not stopped for 10 minutes, and if I had gotten off my drag we would have placed higher. Oh well! I was upset on Sunday at the awards breakfast when they acknowledged the musher who stopped to help the girl after I left, but nobody else. They said that he would have placed in the money had he not stopped, which was untrue. Scott placed in front of this man and Scott was 20 minutes faster. So they were trying to say that if he had not stopped for 5 minutes he would have been 25 minutes faster! It irked me. I on the other hand would have beaten a few teams ahead of me if I had not stopped for 10 minutes. I did not want people to clap for me at the awards breakfast for helping this girl, I did it because she was in need, I just thought it was wrong that this one guy took all of the credit.

2/21/09 - After several years of not going off the Sandwich Notch race made a comeback. Scott ran 8 dogs in the 45 mile class. His team was: Valeska, Viktor, Lucas, Mark, Circe, Beaver, Homer & Mannie. Once again Viktor's sore muscle started bothering him. He only made it a few miles in lead, but was fine in team. Scott made 3 leader changes before settling with Circe, who is not a fast dog in lead, but she did the job for 40 miles. We will not complain about his run...Scott finished in 2nd place. I had not been feeling well all week so I had our friend Rob run my team in the 20 mile class.  His team was:  Tannis, Belle, Kit, Kyia, Kermit & Hailee. Rob ended up not feeling well and he could not help the team out much. They finished somewhere in the middle of the pack. Great news, Mannie finished his SDO title! Lucas and Homer finished their SD titles, each dog finished with 180 mile (they only needed 100 miles and 5 legs).

1/14/09 & 1/15/09 - We had three team entered in the Stratford Nighthawks Sled Dog Race. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Mark, Circe, Beaver, & Mannie in the 30/30. I ran Jadis, Lucas, Belle, Kit, Kermit & Homer in the 30/30. Scott's brother Jay ran: Tannis, Kasper, Zina, Kyia, Ember & Hailee in the 15/15. Saturday Scott's team did great. Sunday Viktor's sore muscle came back to bug him, Scott had to bag Viktor for more than half of the race. Valeska ended up running in single lead, it was very slow going for him since he is used to going pretty fast. Scott ended up placing in 3rd. My team did great on Saturday. Sunday I fell and could not help the dogs at all, we were a little bit slower on Sunday, but still placed 4th. Jay did well finishing in 5th place. Beaver & Circe finished their SDX titles!

2/7/09 - We went to Greenville, ME to run the 30 mile race at the 100 Mile Wilderness Race. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Lucas, Mark, Circe, Beaver, Homer & Mannie.  He had a good run and finished the 30 miles under 2.5 hours. I ran: Jadis, Belle, Kit, Kermit, Hailee, Kyia, Ember & Tannis.  I had an ok run, it could have been better. I ended up with Kermit in lead just to mix it up. It was fun until he tried to continue down the lake instead of going to the finish :-)

1/31/09 - We went to the Katahdin Ironworks 30. It was a really nice trail, although next year we are running an 8 dog team in the open class! The new snow made the trail very punchy for the dogs, it was slow going with only 6 dogs. The trail is nice and wide with lots of hills. Our dogs tend to like a wooded trail, so I don't think it was their favorite trail in the world since it was very open due to logging. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Mark, Circe, Beaver & Mannie they did well finishing in 3rd place and the fastest Siberian team. Although Viktor was still slower than normal because of that sore muscle in his back leg. I ran: Belle, Jadis, Lucas, Kit, Kermit & Homer and we finished in 5th place. We were impressed that we beat a bunch of the open team times. I'm pretty sure if Scott had run his 8 dog team he would have had 1st place in the open class. Kasper & Hailee ran on Bobby Bain's team for the 15 mile class.

1/24/09 - Our friend Marsha Colcord put a lot of hard work into putting on the Wonalancet Fun Run. It was 15 miles of some of the best trails ever. We have not had that much fun since racing Sandwich Notch. The trail followed some of the Sandwich Notch system which made it challenging, very hilly, windy, with lots of trees. What a great time! Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Mark, Circe, Beaver & Mannie. The first half of the race Scott thought he had it won, but then Viktor slowed down for the second half. He has been struggling with a sore muscle in his back leg. Nothing that stops him from running, it just slows him down. Scott ended up with a respectable 3rd place. I ran: Jadis, Lucas, Dahlia, Kit, Kermit & Homer and finished in 6th. I was the first team out so I did not have to deal with Jadis not overtaking teams (something we are working on). They did very well. Our friend Rob ran a third team for us: Belle, Zina, Hailee, Kyia, Ember & Tannis. They did well finishing in 11th place. Kasper ran lead for Bobby Bain's team and they finished just ahead of Rob in 10th place. It was a great day!

1/10/09 & 1/11/09 - We ran our first race of the season. It was a Fun Run put on by Patriot Siberian Husky Rescue in memory of Will Cowie. Scott's father ran in the 4 dog class: Kasper, Zina, Hailee & Kyia. I ran in the 6 dog class: Jadis, Lucas, Weather, Kit, Kermit & Homer. Scott ran in the 8 dog class: Valeska, Viktor, Mark, Circe, Dahlia, Belle, Beaver & Mannie. Kasper finished his SDX title. This race was a bit of an eye opener for me and my inexperienced leaders. They had been doing really well in training, and have not had any trouble over taking slower teams. Saturday I had a lot of trouble when I tried to over take teams, my leaders decided to stop and sit. On Saturday we lost 7 minutes because of this problem. I ended up taking Jadis out of lead and putting Homer in lead just to get the team back to the truck. On Sunday I ran the same leaders that I started with on Saturday and just worked them through it. I did have some trouble, but not nearly as much. It is a great team, I just have to get them a little more confident. Scott had a decent run. Valeska is 8 years old and has slowed down ever so slightly. The only real problem Scott had with his team was that Belle can no longer keep up with them. Mark finished his SDX title. On Saturday I ran: Pando, Coyuk & Orion in the old dog race. I ran the oldest dogs at that race, Coyuk is 12.5 years old, Pando & Orion are both 10.5 years old. Coyuk had trouble keeping up, and I would have been faster had I only ran Pando & Orion (who had tight tugs the whole way), but Coyuk had a good time.

10/26/08 - 11/2/08 - Scott and I went to the Siberian Husky Club Of America's National Specialty Show in Gettysburg, PA. We had a wonderful time! We took Valeska, Circe & Ben with us.
Monday we went to the Rig Race. Circe ran lead on another team in the 4 dog class. She was a bit nervous about running with dogs, and for a person, she did not know. Scott did the bikejor with Valeska. It was not Valeska's day though, she did not run well. For Valeska that is pretty weird, in all the years we have run her I have never seen her not want to go. We were delivering a dog, from another kennel, to some folks at the National. She ended up being a bit of a handful and was trying to attack Valeska & Circe every chance she could. So we think maybe Valeska was a bit down because of it. After the race we did some sight seeing.
Tuesday we had Rally. Both Valeska and Circe were entered in Rally Advanced, which is all off lead. We had to pull Valeska's entry since she was in season, and dogs are not allowed to be shown in obedience when they are in season. We were bummed! Circe, who has not been off lead much, did good and got her first Rally Advanced leg and 4th place (12 dogs in the class). We also got to see Ben & Valeska's daughter Angel (Kiana's Benden Anna CD, RA) who was in Rally Excellent, she did great with a score of 97. Circe went into Rally Challenge with Scott but they did not place (13 in the class). They had to go against dogs with Rally Advanced Excellent titles. After Rally we watched Veteran Sweeps & the Rescue Dog Parade. Then we had our  breeder educational seminars, which was great as usual.
Wednesday was our busy day. Scott showed Circe in the Sled Dog degreed class and they took 2nd. I showed Valeska in the Sled Dog Excellent/Sled Dog Outstanding class, she was the only one in her class, she took 1st. Ben & Valeska were both supposed to be in Novice B, but again we had to pull Valeska's entry. Ben would have had 2nd place and finished his CD title had he not laid down on the long sit. What a knucklehead! Scott took Circe into Sub-Novice (or Pre-Novice) which is all on lead. Circe took 1st place (out of 6 dogs). After obedience Ben went into the Sled Dog degreed class and took 3rd place. Then we had the Battlefield tour and we learned a lot about the battle of Gettysburg.
Thursday we watched agility. Angel took 2nd place in one of her classes. Our friend Kathy had her dogs Kai & Clyde with her. They both did great in their second class, and Kai took 1st place. We watched the Halloween Costume contest and saw lots of great costumes. We missed the Annual Meeting because Scott had a bad headache.
Friday we watched some judging then we did some more sight seeing. We saw the senior handling which was like junior handling for older folks. It was funny. After that they had the Dirty Tricks class. Which meant the handlers were bribing the judge, throwing food, crowding other dogs, etc.  It was so funny and silly. Friday night was the auction and we did not buy anything.
Saturday was the Best Of Breed judging. It took all day. Valeska did not make the cut. After Best Of Breed Valeska went in against the other 5 winners of their Sled Dog classes, but did not take Best Sled Dog. The male from the Sled Dog Excellent/Sled Dog Outstanding class won.
Sunday we drove home. I cannot wait until next year. The show will be held in Tennessee in 2009.

10/11/08 - We went to an obedience trial in NH with Jadis and Lucas. Both dogs were entered in Rally Novice B. Lucas went first and finished his title with a score of 88. Jadis went second and she finished her title with a score of 90. We saw Orion & Minnie's daughter Tok get her first Rally Advanced leg. We went to the show with Whatleigh and she got a second Rally Novice leg on Bodhi (Dahlia's brother). It was a fun day.

9/6/08 & 9/7/08 - We went to the North Conway shows this weekend. Jadis was entered in Rally Novice B on Saturday with hopes of finishing her title, but we had to pull her entry since she started her season. Lucas was entered in Rally Novice B both days. He just graduated from his beginner obedience class, earning his Canine Good Citizen this past Thursday. I'm proud to say that he got his first leg with a score of 95 and his second leg with a score of 91 (it was windy and he lost focus on one exercise...had he done the exercise well he would have placed). I showed Zina in Bred By on Saturday and she took Reserve. There was a judge change on Sunday and I pulled her entry. She does not like to be hand stacked, I have to free bait her, and I knew the replacement judge would not like that.

8/24/08 - 9/1/08 - Scott and I had a wonderful, but tiring, vacation. I made a separate page for our adventures. Please click here for more info.

8/8/08 - 8/10/08 - My friend Whatleigh and I went to NY to a dog show. I had Ember entered in Bred By Exhibitor all 3 days in hopes of getting the major he needs to finish his championship. Ember decided to show like an idiot all three days so we did not get any points. We had a great time otherwise!

8/3/08 - We went to the Keene shows with Jadis & Zina. Scott showed Jadis in Rally Novice B, and they picked up her second leg. I showed Zina in Bred By, it was her first show, and we took Winners Bitch for 1 point.
Hard to believe, but I sent our entry for the Can- Am today! It is hard to send entries for races when we are not even in harness yet.

7/10/08 - Jadis was entered in Rally Novice B for both Wednesday & Thursday at the LRKC show. Wednesday ended up being really hot, and Scott had to go to a meeting, so we did not go to the show. Thursday Ali & I went to the show with Jadis to wait for Scott. They almost missed their ring time. Scott ran up took Jadis and went into the ring without seeing the pattern. I watched several handlers make errors on 2 different signs. Scott did not make any handler errors, but Jadis did not do that well. She loves her dad and was insulted that he snatched up her leash and ran into the ring without saying hi first. Poor girl, this was her first show. Anyhow they qualified with a score of 73. I'm sure  she will do much better for her second and third legs!!

5/30/08 - We went Yankee's 40th Specialty Show. I showed Ben in Novice B with hopes of getting his 3rd leg to finish his CD title. He was not focused and blew his off lead heeling. I showed bald  Ember in Bred By, he did not place. Scott showed Ben and I showed Ember in the Sled Dog class. Ben took 1st and Ember took 2nd. The day really picked up when Scott took Pando in Rally Novice. They did great!! Pando took 1st place with a score of 96 and finished her RN title. We are so proud of her, and of our 9th RN title! Scott took a bald Kit into Bred By and did not place. Scott and Ben made the cut for breed. The best part of the day was Pando's win!

5/12/08 - Once again Scott was awarded by the Pennsylvania Sled Dog Club. Scott got Best 6 Dog Mid-Distance team for the 07/08 season.

5/3/08 & 5/4/08 -  Time to start showing again!! We went to Acton, ME on Saturday & Sunday with Pando. It was her first time being shown in Rally Novice. Pando picked up 2 legs of her RN title. On Sunday I showed Kit in the Bred By class and she took 2nd in her class.

3/15/08 - We went to the Bartlett Fun Run and Scott ran a team. He had a lot of trouble with the boys trying to breed Valeska who was in standing season! So he did not end the season with a great placement, but still made Sled Dog Outstanding time. His team was: Valeska, Viktor, Kermit, Mannie, Mark & Beaver. Viktor finished his SDX title!

3/8/08 - We put on the first Patriot Siberian Husky Rescue Fun Run. The rain did not really start until the awards. Everyone had a good time! Scott ran in the 8 dog class. In the first mile he had to stop 5 times to switch around dogs. Jadis was not running  and dragging down the team. Scott ended up putting her in the bag, and she rode on the sled for the whole run. We think she may have had a melt down racing each weekend, and doing the 60 the weekend before. Scott's team that actually ran was: Valeska, Viktor, Circe, Kermit, Mannie, Mark & Beaver. I had hoped to make SDX time to finish Kasper's title. Kasper was really lame and we were really slow. So it was not our weekend. I ran: Kasper, Homer, Tannis, Kit, Hailee & Belle. Bobby Bain ran Kyia & Zak. Mannie finished his SDX title!!

3/1/08 - We went to the Can-AM. It was Scott's first time running a 60 mile race. The plan was for it to be a learning experience for everyone. Scott did not push them and he let them pace themselves. Viktor ran for about 40 miles in lead, then he put Jadis in lead for the rest of the way. They all did well! We are proud. The trail was slow and punchy, it was snowing for the whole time. They did it in under 9 hours (which was Scott's goal) and in 23rd place. I ran the 30 mile class. I tried running Kasper on my team, but he was lame only 4 miles into the trail. I took it slow and we finished 25th place. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Circe, Jadis, Belle, Mannie, Mark & Beaver. I ran: Kasper, Tannis,  Kyia, Kit, Hailee & Kermit.

2/23/08 - We went the the Mannsville Quest in NY to defend Scott's title. We each ran a team in the 6 dog 15 mile class. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Belle, Jadis, Mannie &  Beaver. I ran: Circe, Ember,  Hailee, Tannis, Kermit  & Mark. I started with Ember in lead, but had to switch to Tannis halfway out. I was sad racing without Kasper. I hope he is better for the Can-AM. We loaned Kyia & Zak  to run on Bobby Bain's team. Scott came in 1st place! I came in 5th. We then split up Scott's 8 dog team for the 4 dog 10 mile class. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Mannie &  Beaver. I ran: Circe, Belle, Mark & Jadis. Even though he did not have fresh dogs Scott was still able to take 4th place (out of 17 teams). I took 12th place. I spent a good chunk of time trying to catch a loose dog. I was not able to catch her. They gave me the Sportsmen Award for trying! Beaver finished his SD title!

2/16/08 & 2/17/08 - We each raced a team in the back to back 30 mile class at the Stratford Nighthawks Sled Dog Race. Scott did the 30 miles in 3 hours each day, Scott took 2nd place out of 11 teams!! I finished in 7th place. Kasper ended up lame from the race. I'm worried that he might not be able to race for the rest of the season. Hailee finished her SD title!! Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Circe, Liv, Belle, Mannie, Mark & Beaver.  I ran: Kasper, Jadis,  Kyia, Kit, Tannis,  Hailee, Kermit & Zak.  2/18/08 - Kasper has arthritis in both shoulders :-(

2/9/08 - We went to the Garland Fun Run in Maine. We each ran a team in the 6 dog 15 mile class. Scott ran: Valeska, Belle, Circe, Mannie, Beaver & Viktor. I ran: Kasper, Jadis, Zak, Tannis, Ember & Mark. We loaned Kyia & Hailee to run on Bobby Bain's team. Scott came in 1st place! I came in 4th. We had a good time. The people in that club are very nice.

2/3/08 - Scott ran 8 dogs at the L'Odysee Appalachienne race in Québec. We went knowing that the teams are really fast there. Last year they ran the 34 mile course with the fastest times from 1.5 - 2 hours. This year 2 feet of fresh snow fell Friday/Saturday making the trail slow. There was 29 teams registered for that class, but only 14 ran because of the snow. The fastest time ended up being 2 hours and 43 minutes. Scott came in 9th place, and was the fastest Siberian Husky team, with a time of 4 hours. We were proud of the dogs! Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Circe, Jadis, Belle, Mannie, Mark & Beaver. Viktor ran lead with Valeska for 20 miles, then Circe took his spot to run with Valeska for the  last 14 miles.

1/26/08 & 1/27/08 - We had a good time at Tamworth. I'm not into sprint mushing, but I still managed to have a good time. BIG THANKS to our friend Rob who ran a team for us. We ran 3 teams in the 6 dog Sportsmen class. There was 16 teams in our class, 9 teams were purebred. Scott took 4th, I took 9th & Rob took 10th. All of the dogs we ran have been trained up for longer runs, so I'm pretty pleased with how they did. Scott ran: Valeska, Viktor, Circe, Beaver, Mannie & Mark. Rob ran: Jadis, Tannis, Belle, Kit, Zak & Liv. I ran: Kasper, Ember, Gynger, Kyia, Hailee & Kermit.

1/23/08 - Our season has not started off well. Scott's brother came from North Carolina to run two races for us, neither race went off. We had really been looking forward to Scott running the 100 mile  Wilderness race, but he needed Stratford to qualify for that race. We had asked Rob to run a team for us at Craftsbury. I got the news today that Craftsbury was also canceled. We will run the 3 teams at the NESDC sprint race at Tamworth this weekend.

12/28/07 - I just uploaded the new website. It was time for a face lift. Be sure to check out the dog pages, each dog has new photos in their gallery and they each have new write-ups on their info page. Also, check out our new page called "Race Plans" for this year's current race plans. This page looks empty now, but I'm sure it will be full soon. For events that happened before the new website please click on the "Archived Events" link.

Archived Events